X alternative Bluesky sees surge in users over last week

ISTANBUL

Over the last week more than 700,000 people have started using Bluesky, a social media platform seen as an alternative to the Elon Musk-owned platform X, pushing the young platform’s total user numbers over 14.5 million, said Bluesky COO Rose Wang.

A majority of the new Bluesky users are from the US, tech-focused website the Verge wrote on Tuesday.

Bluesky is now the second-most downloaded social media app in the US Appstore, it said.

Despite Bluesky’s surging popularity, the Meta-owned competitor Threads is still larger.

The outcome of last week’s US presidential election could have spurred a surge in new users for Bluesky, with Musk one of President-elect Donald Trump’s biggest and highest-profile supporters.

People might be seeking an alternative to platforms owned by Musk or seeking a new forum due to the rise in hate speech on X, said the Verge.

A recent drop in sales of Musk’s Tesla electric cars has also been blamed, at least partially, on eco-conscious buyers not wanting to support his right-wing views.

Bluesky, originally created as a project within Twitter in 2019, became an independent company in 2022.

Currently led by Jay Graber, the platform also gained 3 million new users after X was suspended in Brazil in September.